The fearless adventure of an intrepid card player and his attempts to parlay $50 into a fortune...

Saturday, May 22, 2004

Not Dead Yet

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. Anyone who has watched the weather knows that the Chicago area is in danger of sliding off the bedrock and into the Lake for all the rain that's falling out there. We in the air travel industry would like to go on record to say that the recent and future weather predictions for that area sucks. As it is, I've put in about 36 hours of work in the last three days, and I have two more days to go before I'm done with this week.

Three more sit and goes into the books for the Challenge, and again, my adventure into the $20+$2 arena was a bust. Yesterday was a day full of absolute garbage cards. In fact, given the lack of any real playable hands I'm rather impressed to have done as well as I did yesterday.

$20+$2 - 6th - -$22

About 6 hands in the tourney, I get Big Slick. A bunch of limpers, and a min raiser ahead of me, I pop it to T45 (which, in retrospect, should have been more). There are like 6 people in the pot and it's a monster. Flop comes 9d, 5d, 9c and the all-in wars begin, so I have to bail on this hand.

In level 2, I get AQo in MP. Folded to me, I pop it for +3BB and win the blinds...

Halfway through the 50/100 blinds, I pick up K5s in the BB and check to see the flop come a bunch of small cards with 2 spades. The other guy keeps making min bets so my odds are still good to call him down, but the turn and river comes two hearts and I miss the flush, -T150.

After that, I literally got blinded away to the felt.

$10+$1 - 3rd - +$9

I put a folding clinic on in this one for the first three levels. I got some of those "trouble" hands that I in an earlier time would have tried to play, but I was a good little boy and mucked them. Finally, my patience pays off in level 4 and I pick up KK in the small blind. UTG pops it to T175 and I smooth call with the BB sticking around to a flop of 4d, 6h, Td. I shove my last T505 in and am called by the raiser who turns over QQ. Turn and River bring two Jacks and I'm good.

In level 5, I raise with A3h and get the blinds. The next hand I get AA and raise again, hoping someone would try to call or raise trying to catch my "obvious steal". Nope.. Blinds again.

Down to 6 with the blinds of 50/100, I bet out T300 with QJh on a steal attempt. BB shoves T715 and I bail.

I'm quiet until the blinds are 150/300 and I have around T1050 left. I'm second from the last stack with the BB pushing T300 or his last T430 in for the blind. I get AJh and shove from UTG. BB calls me with 83o and he's gone....

...and then the cards shut down on me. This always seems to happen when I'm the Bubble Boy. I get eaten by the blinds, but somehow survive to see the money. I have to make my stand with K6o and run into A8o. 8 hits on the turn and that's that.

$10+$1 - 3rd - +$9

Another tourney of no cards to speak of. Blinds are up to 50/100 before I can even make a move on this one, and as it is, I'm in the BB and shove T100 of my T545 stack into the mix, to be dealt 22. 6 folks left, and I figure with my run of cards, this is as good as it's gonna get. Folded to the SB who does a min raise. I have a pocket pair and I smell a steal, so I shove.

He turns over AKo. Uh oh. Luckily, the board misses him cleanly and the ducks keep me alive.

A stupid play with the blinds at 150/300 hurts me. I get K6o in the small blind and my stack is around T950. BB has half his stack out in the field in the BB and it's folded to me. I shove for the steal and am called up by him. He turns over the mighty 85o, flops a 5 and rivers an 8. Ugh.

Next hand, the two big stacks shove at each other. Raiser turns over 44, caller calls over QQ. The board flops the set 4 for the raiser, but also comes with 4 clubs. Caller had the Qc and the 4's are sent packing. Again, I scratch into the money.

I start shoving with anything remotely playable. I get Q4o and shove, to get called by Q3o. We hit the Q, but the board is all overcards to our kicker, so we split. Next hand I get KJo in the small blind and shove the last of my T260 chips in... and run into KK. Poof.

This table was apparently chock full 'o' smack talk, looking at the hand histories. Not that I knew when I was playing. I leave chat off. As I've stated earlier, I have yet to observe any chat that's worth diverting my attention to, and nothing is more frustrating to someone trying to tilt you by talking smack then dead silence. Especially when you beat him and you still say nothing. Let them think I'm a machine or something.

Anyway, only a -$4 loss today, so I'm still in the $20+$2 level... One more time.

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